ISSR provides seed grants to faculty seeking external funding in the social sciences. Social Science Research is done across many fields including the traditional fields of sociology, anthropology, psychology, social psychology, economics, and political science, but also in communications, criminal justice, law, journalism, education, nursing, medicine, gerontology, social work, environmental science, computer engineering, and more. Seed grants of up to $8000.00, to be expended over 12 months, are available to researchers on all four ASU campuses.

Proposals must include:

Brief summary of the work to be done (no more than 1500 words)

Bibliography

Budget, with justification

Current CV

Name and website of granting agency and information about the specific program that the agency is funding

Name and email address or phone number of a program officer, and a summary of your discussion with that program officer

Deliverable for Awardees:

A proposal, submitted to a granting or contract agency within 12 months of receiving an ISSR award

If a seed grant involves the collection and analysis of data for inclusion in a proposal in a proposal to an external agency, then awardees will also be expected to submit a report on their findings (no more than 3 pages) for the ISSR website

Awardees will be invited to participate in workshops, seminars, and social events organized by ISSR

Criteria for Evaluation of Proposals:The criteria applied by reviewers for NSFand NIH proposals are useful guidelines for researchers who are applying for seed grants from the ISSR. Reviewers for NSF proposals, for example, ask whether the proposed research has the potential to advance knowledge and understanding within a field or across different fields. This is the criterion known as intellectual merit. Reviewers also look for creative and original ideas and ask whether the plan for carrying out proposed research is sound. Reviewers ask if the investigator(s) are qualified to conduct the research proposed and whether the PI (either at the home institution or through collaboration with others) has the resources needed to carry out the research. Proposals to NSF also must have a statement about the broader impacts—the benefits to society—of the proposed work.